Category: Money

Nov 09, 2011 (LBO) – The Central Bank of Sri Lanka said it has been selected as a finalist from among 17 nominations for the ‘Best New Banknote Series’ award at an international currency forum. The award at the International Association of Currency Affairs (IACA) Conference held in Singapore was for new currency note series […]

Nov 03, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s state debt office rejected all bids at a Treasuries auction Wednesday after rates rose for several weeks running. Outright rejections of bids have in the past coincided with tight liquidity coming from defence of a dollar peg. LBO’s economics columnist fuss-budget recently warned the market to expect entire […]

Oct 10, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s gross foreign reserves were 8,050 million US dollars by the end of August 2011, only slightly lower than the 8,098.8 million US dollars reported in July, Central Bank data showed. In August the central bank had sold 197. 6 million US dollars in foreign exchange markets to commercial […]

Oct 06, 2011 (LBO) – Interest rates in Sri Lanka’s overnight money markets eased Thursday, a day after the monetary authority resumed cash auctions to inject liquidity, dealers said. Sri Lanka’s rates have been rising in recent weeks with the defence of a dollar peg which has drained liquidity from the system. The Central Bank’s […]

Oct 05, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s average overnight risk free money market rate has topped the one year Treasuries rate, as monetary authorities continued to target both the interest rate and exchange rate, dealers said. In the repo market, where overnight loans backed by gilts, most deals were made at 7. 45 percent Wednesday […]

Oct 05, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s central bank injected 1. 25 billion rupees to money markets overnight at 8. 25 percent Wednesday resuming reverse repo auctions and capping spiking overnight rates triggered by forex interventions, dealers said. Though markets still have excess liquidity rates rose as banks which do not have exposure limits were […]

Oct 04, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s short term interest rates are heading higher as liquidity tightens in money markets and policy contradictions in forex and money markets begin to bite, dealers said. The weighted average overnight rate in the repo market, where banks and primary dealers of Treasuries sell money to each other collateralized […]

Sept 30, 2011 (LBO) – Police in Maldives and Sri Lanka have arrested five in an international fraud involving forged cash and credit cards related banks in New Zealand, Canada, Australia, China and France, a media report said. Minivan News, a Maldives based online news service quoting police inspector Mohamed Riyaz said two Maldivian nationals […]

Sept 20, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s central bank accepted 20 billion rupees at 7. 08 percent from banks at an open market auction Tuesday as excess reserve in the island’s banks continued to decline amid forex sales to defend a dollar peg. Sri Lanka has a policy corridor of 7. 0 to drain excess […]

Sept 19, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s commercial banks loaned 26.9 billion rupees to private business in July 2011, down from 39 billion rupees a month earlier and credit to the state fell, following the sale of a soveriegn bond, official data showed. Central Bank credit to government – usually a red flag of impending […]

Sept 19, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s central bank resumed active open market operations Monday absorbing a small amount of excess liquidity eight basis points above it 7.0 percent policy rate, rejecting most of the bids that came at higher rates, dealers said. Market participants offered to sell 36.15 billion in excess rupees through the […]

Sept 16, 2011 (LBO) – Sri Lanka’s central bank said it had appointed Wealth Trust Securities Limited as a primary dealer for government securities. The firm’s chief execuitve is Dammika Ranawana who had two decades of experience in fixed income securties markets in Sri Lanka. The firm is promoted by Sri Lanka based Finco Holdings […]